FILE PHOTO: Andrew Ferguson, Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, speaks at a fireside chat at Harvard University's second annual Conservative and Republican Student Conference 2025 at The Charles Hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., February 8, 2025. REUTERS/Sophie Park/File Photo

(Reuters) -Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson has sent letters to several large healthcare employers and staffing companies to conduct a comprehensive review of their employment agreements including non-compete agreements, the regulator said in a statement on Wednesday.

"We strongly encourage all employers - not just those receiving letters today - to review their contracts closely, to ensure that any restrictions on employee mobility are in full compliance with the law," the FTC said.

It did not name the companies that received letters.

Last week, the FTC barred Gateway Services, the largest pet cremation business in the U.S., from enforcing its non-compete agreements with 1,800 workers, saying they unfairly diminish workers' leverage with their employer.

Ferguson has previously said the agency aims to crack down on deceptive practices by employers to deliver on President Donald Trump's promise to address the economic concerns of the working class.

(Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones and Bhargav Acharya in Toronto;)